First Lotus bud of the season, other pond pics, and an updated shade garden

[jclements]

First Lotus Bud of the Season on Little Golden Phoenix! Can't wait!! 



A tiny anacharis bloom.



Some beautiful Foxfire pads.



Containers on the patio.



Our entire deck is shaded by an enormous Crepe Myrtle. It's just starting to bloom.



The front of our house has a very shady corner. The grass hasn't been growing well in one spot, so we adjusted the rock border to capture some of the spot. I bought a few pink everblooming hydrangeas that were temporarily planted in these pots until I could put them into the ground.



Last night, I bought some really nice hosta, hechura, and ajuga to put into the black mulch that we spread last weekend.
I think everything pops against the black mulch, and even though not colorful necessarily, the white brightens things up.

[Holldoll]

They are all beautiful! We are building a garden shed and once it's built we are going to have a shady area, I'm very excited to plant a shade garden!

[landey1230]

Woohoo!! Everything is in full swing in your part of the woods. 

[PondmaninAL]

Jessica, won't that black mulch over heat the plants in that area being in Texas?

[jclements]

Thanks!

I'm not sure about the black mulch getting too hot. This area is 100% shade from a huge elm tree. This is my first time using mulch--maybe someone with more experience can chime in?

[Indiana Karen]

Everything looks great Jessica...........love those wavy pots.

Karen

[greenthumbnails]

I have the hardest time with growing flowering plants in the shade parts of my yard under large oak trees.  I finally settled for red/pink/white caladiums and they return every year here in Florida.  Note of interest, Caladiums also produce a single large white flower when the plant has matured. 

Where did you get your rocks from?

[jclements]

Hi MJ, What part of Florida do you live in? We moved to Texas from Gainesville about 2 1/2 years ago. Caladiums also do well here, but so far have been annuals for me. Maybe they would do better if mulched here? The rocks were with the house when we bought it, not sure where they came from. The previous owners had them up on their sides sticking out of the ground, very jagged. I like this way better.

Karen, I'm a sucker for glazed pots!

[miguynmkoi]

Beautiful shade garden.  I like the large pot in the flower bed too.  I have lots of broken in half pots which I lay in flower beds which look like they are partially buried.